


chemistry

by moonsixes



Category: ONEUS (Band)
Genre: Canon Compliant, First Kiss, Getting Together, M/M, Pre-debut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-09-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:08:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26373223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonsixes/pseuds/moonsixes
Summary: It was like some act of chemistry, one that started from the moment that Hwanwoong walked into that practice room and found some guy dancing around with headphones on, completely oblivious to the rest of the world as he sang his heart out. That's a metaphor Seoho would like.Lee Seoho and him: a chemical reaction.
Relationships: Lee Seoho/Yeo Hwanwoong
Comments: 3
Kudos: 51





	chemistry

It was like some act of chemistry, one that started from the moment that Hwanwoong walked into that practice room and found some guy dancing around with headphones on, completely oblivious to the rest of the world as he sang his heart out. That's a metaphor Seoho would like.

 _Gunmin_ still slips out sometimes, in moments of affection and teasing, when Hwanwoong forgets himself. It's always an accident though; _Seoho_ feels like a reflection of all the ways they've grown beside each other over the years, and that's just how Hwanwoong thinks of him now, even in the retrospect of his memory.

Lee Seoho and him: a chemical reaction.

* * *

It's easy to fall into something with Seoho.

What that is, exactly, he isn't sure of at first, but they're both new trainees and Hwanwoong is a little too eager to please, self-conscious of his every move. Seoho is determined to make him take things a little less seriously.

Seoho's two years older and auditioned into the company only a month after him, but Hwanwoong quickly learns that doesn't mean Seoho will act like it. He's always got a smile on his face, and usually behaves at practice, but within the first two weeks of knowing him, Hwanwoong is the victim of three different pranks and a seemingly never-ending slew of terrible jokes. He's confusing, full of dichotomies — full of energy one moment and falling asleep the next, all athletic grace and confidence when he's not running around and flapping his arms to try and make the other trainees crack up.

And he has just the sweetest voice. It's too bad, Hwanwoong thinks, that he mostly uses it for absolute nonsense.

"Please stop," Hwanwoong groans at what feels like the hundredth bad pun he's heard that day. They've still got twenty minutes left of break time and another two hours of practice, and he doesn't know how much longer he can last, because Seoho has been absolutely relentless with the puns.

"I'm practicing for the variety shows," Seoho tells him, chugging down some water. "I'll have you know I'm actually very shy."

"The shameless way you say that makes you sound like you're lying," Hwanwoong says, kicking at Seoho, who dodges him nimbly, even with his open drink bottle in his hand. "And you're not going on any variety shows."

Neither of those things are true, though. Hwanwoong's sure he'll see Seoho on TV one day. And even though he's perfectly comfortable when he's goofing around, whenever he performs in front of people he actually is kind of shy, despite having that voice that Hwanwoong envies so much.

Hwanwoong's an affectionate guy, so it doesn't take too long to notice that Seoho shies away from unnecessary touch. He'll bear it when they're going through choreography, but he'll avoid or shrug off the casual touches of the other trainees with a quick smile. So Hwanwoong learns to let Seoho come to him instead.

Seoho pokes and pinches at Hwanwoong or ruffles his hair to tease him, using his long legs to his advantage when he's running away from retaliation. When Hwanwoong is worn out from the stress and pressure and thinks he could just fall asleep on his feet and never wake up, Seoho still manages to make him laugh all the time, even though he knows Seoho must be feeling the same way. But sometimes when the silliness can't take the weight off his shoulders, Seoho will sit beside him and let their fingers brush against each other until Hwanwoong takes his hand and squeezes tight until he can breathe again.

It's the simplest of gestures, but he knows what it means coming from Seoho.

Over time, Hwanwoong can feel Seoho draw closer to him, like a cautious animal; an aloof cat who just _chooses_ someone to love one day.

Seoho will sometimes put a hand on his back, just briefly, as they leave practice together. On the occasions that Seoho can convince Hwanwoong to kick a soccer ball around with him at the park, once he's thoroughly proved that he can at least beat Hwanwoong's footwork in soccer if not dancing, on the walk home Seoho will tuck the ball under one arm and throw the other around Hwanwoong's shoulders, pulling him close for a few moments before letting go. And sometimes when they eat together, their knees will press together underneath the table and Seoho won't move away, just continue chattering away until his food gets cold and Hwanwoong's ears burn red.

Hwanwoong starts to long for those touches.

He thinks his overactive imagination and the lingering remainders of his teenage hormones are likely to blame, and he tries not to let himself hope too hard. It would be easy to read too far into these tiny touches that probably look like nothing from the outside, but somehow feel like everything. Like always, he just waits for Seoho.

Their late-night practices become more frequent with every passing month and every new evaluation to dread, trainees dropping like flies around them. After drilling the latest choreography until they're too tired to go on, they're just lying on the floor flat on their backs, staring at the ceiling with sweat cooling on their faces. Hwanwoong feels Seoho's hand brush against his, and he shuts his eyes. If he wasn't focusing so hard on breathing he thinks he wouldn't be at all. Their fingers rub together gently, just a tiny, soft movement.

It's a touch that Hwanwoong knows by now, is even familiar with, but this time the air feels heavy with something that makes his heart race, hyperaware of the feel of Seoho's skin on his. He lets out a shaky breath, and before he can work up the courage to say something, Seoho rolls onto his side.

He's not sure that Seoho will kiss him until he _does_ , and then instinct and adrenaline take over and Hwanwoong is kissing him back, clumsy and unpracticed and wet and eager. Seoho climbs on top of him, his weight pressing Hwanwoong down onto the floor of the practice room. The back of his skull aches against the hardwood, but he doesn't care at all.

After a little while the frenzy eases into something gentler, less frantic. Seoho lifts his head, hair messy and lips red, and smiles his beautiful smile right in Hwanwoong's face.

"We shouldn't stay here," he whispers, and kisses Hwanwoong again softly before getting to his feet.

Hwanwoong whines at the loss, just a tiny bit, and it makes Seoho laugh, bright and cheerful and familiar. He extends a hand to help Hwanwoong up, and gathers him up into his arms unexpectedly once he's on his feet, holding him tight against his chest for a brief moment.

"You're really something, Yeo Hwanwoong," Seoho murmurs into his hair before letting go.

 _You're one to talk,_ Hwanwoong thinks, dizzy with it.

* * *

There was no sudden combustion when they met, no explosion. The change between the two of them was slow, even after that first kiss, like a wave rushing over a rock again and again, reshaping it bit by bit.

"You know that can take hundreds of years before there's any kind of perceivable difference," Seoho tells him. "I don't think we're going to live _that_ long."

"It's supposed to be romantic," Hwanwoong says, squirming in his arms, which only makes Seoho hold him tighter. "You're insufferable, you know that?"

Seoho grins. "You love me anyway."


End file.
